It's All About the Presents
by animellow
Summary: Christmas is here, and Allison can't wait to experience the large celebration for it with her family. But a mischievous kiss under a sneakily placed mistletoe changes all that in a second, and a challenge is ignited within several known (and unknown) suitors wanting to receive the girl's heart for their present. What'll she do now? Fem!Allen x various.Rated T for (mild?) cursing.
1. Prologue: Before the Kisses of Christmas

**Okay, so before we start, I have a few clarifications I want to make:**

 **1\. Timcanpy won't be seen as often in this story - partially because he'll be doing something else (to be written in a extra/side story for this), partially because I forgot about him.**

 **2\. While reading, you'll see OOCness and many questions will be raised - I'll try to answer these in extra stories written after this one, in each of the boys' perspectives. If after that your questions are still not answered, you may leave a review or PM me.**

 **3\. I do not own D. Gray-Man - the awesome woman known as Katsura Hoshino does - and she rules.**

 **4\. Like how many chapters in the manga are called "Nights", each chapter in this story is called a "Day". Though truth be told, after the prologue the story takes place on Christmas Day (chapters 1-3).**

 **5\. I'll be repeating this on chapter 3, when it is posted.**

* * *

Winter snow covering the soft blue sky, presents fit snugly under fir trees, red and green and gold decor spread everywhere. It was cold, it was warm, it was happy and exciting and calming, all at the same time - the season of joy and cheer was here, meaning it was nothing other than Christmas. Allison felt so glad to be able to celebrate it with someone other than her master for once, and she smiled at the thought of later's celebration for Christmas Eve.

The freezing cold didn't bother her too much, along with some of the memories it brought with it, because when spending time with her new family and friends it was warm - and it wasn't just the cozy sweater Johnny had made. For once, the winter season didn't feel as depressing and painful as it once would have. Sure, she still felt a pang in her heart upon remembering the events of that time - she could never forget it. But somehow, with a home to come home _to_ for once it made the weight on her shoulders just a little lighter.

Well, sort of - at the moment, her shoulders were currently quite dead, as she still had a ton of presents to heave into the cafeteria. And it was no exaggeration when she said a ton. Or maybe it was more than a ton; Allison was pretty strong for a girl, especially one at her age.

She sighed, finally having reached the entrance to the tall tower and come inside. That familiar tired but fond smile played at her lips unconsciously, Timcanpy fluttering around cheerfully above. With the way she stood there, covered by layer over layer of wrapped gifts from the waist up, you wouldn't be able to tell it was her, save for maybe the golden golem flying nearby. The stack of presents went long past her face, so it was no surprise that eventually she tripped upon entrance - how she didn't do so before that was a miracle.

She started to yell in surprise, colorful boxes and bags thrown out of her arms accidentally, when suddenly she fell face first into a firm chest. She looked up, and saw an eye patch and devilish emerald eye smiling cheesily down at her.

"L-Lavi." She said, still a bit shocked. She blinked, not knowing what to say.

"It's not even time to open the gifts yet, and you wanna break 'em all open? Geez, beansprout," he teased, "you're more excited than me."

His sturdy arms had been wrapped around her for good measure, which he now loosened to let her stand on her own two feet. Allison shook the snow out of her hair (she hadn't had a chance to yet, of course), and retaliated against the nickname.

"The name is Allison!" She yelled, before gasping in realization. "Wait, the gifts!"

She dashed around the chuckling red-head to check up on everything, eyes wide and throat ready to cry out in dismay at the ruins. She could see it already without having to look. Ripped wrapping, broken glass and other fragile things, crushed boxes...

Except when she stepped behind Lavi, there was nothing - no mess, no ruined gifts, no busy finders and scientists complaining about the flying presents crashing into them.

She put a hand to her head. "What? The... the presents..." she trailed off, just as confused as anyone ought to be, when she heard a voice from her left.

"Looking for these?"

Allison whipped her head to the direction where it came from, though the voice she recognized immediately and knew who she would see.

"Lenalee, thank goodness!" She breathed a sigh of relief.

The exorcist's best friend was there, holding in both arms two large stacks of the boxes in hand, somehow steady and not precariously threatening to fall over. Lenalee smiled at the girl cheerfully, just as glad as her that no one got hurt.

"I can't thank you enough for getting all those for me," Allison said. "But thank you." She walked over to Lenalee, reaching out to take the heavy load from her arms.

Lenalee pulled back. "Nuh-uh," she smiled. "You're not carrying all of these to the cafeteria without help." She gestured for Lavi to come over, and he took bits and pieces of the stack in his arms. "Yeah, beansprout. With how clumsy you are and how you tend to get lost-"

"It's Allison!"

"You probably wouldn't reach the tree before destroying the whole lot," he affirmed, and Allison shook her head. She sighed in defeat, knowing she wouldn't be able to convince the two otherwise.

"Fine," she said, "thanks," and took her share of the load.

"By the way," she turned to Lenalee, "I didn't even see you get those presents, and they were scattered everywhere. How did you get them all before they fell?" She asked, suddenly curious.

Lavi smiled down at her. "Haven't you noticed? Lenalee here has gotten a lot faster since training more often," he said, nodding to said girl. She smiled back at the two, not denying it. "I think I could have done better though," she said. "It's still much slower than my current record speed."

Allison raised an eyebrow, but didn't ask. Lenalee had started training more often recently, and though she knew that her friend had gotten much faster she didn't expect that it would be that fast. She was proud - and also understood how much easier it would make fighting the Earl and the Noah, although it would still be a challenge often enough.

"That's amazing," she praised.

"Sure," Lavi agreed. "But what's more amazing is how she can level the beast that is Kanda."

Allison cocked her head to the side. "What do you mean?"

At this Lavi smirked, opening his mouth to explain and ignoring the other's scolding. "You know how Kanda isn't as cranky around her, right?" Allison nodded.

"Well," he said, "you won't believe this. The entire month she's been disturbing his meditation, the guy hasn't said a word." He laughed. Allison's eyes grew wide, unbelieving. "You're lying," she said. "You've got to be."

She couldn't understand it. _The_ BaKanda not getting angry at least once? Was he feeling alright? "Are you sure, Lavi?" She asked.

"Of course!" He shouted. "I've been watching those two the whole time, and I can swear it." Lenalee frowned at hearing about his spying then, mouth agape and brows furrowed.

"Lavi!"

He shrugged. "Sorry, Lenalee-chan, but I was curious," he said.

"More like nosy, Lavi." She huffed. Meanwhile, Allison still couldn't quite believe the Bookman Junior's claim.

"I still can't believe it," she repeated aloud. "No way is that jerk not going to get angry for a whole _month_ ," she emphasized. "There's just absolutely no way." She shook her head. "I mean, BaKanda can't even-"

"Can't even what, beansprout?"

Allison stopped before she rounded the corner to the cafeteria, spotting the samurai leaning on the wall. He had his eyes narrowed at the chatting three, arms crossed.

On reflex, the usual cross between a scowl and a restrained, angry smile appeared on her features. "The name," she gritted out, "is _Allison_ , BaKanda. Can your tiny brain not process at least that?" She provoked, a vein popping out of her head. Lavi started to chuckle, and Lenalee sighed, knowing what was coming.

Kanda's hand gripped his sword, a scowl coming onto his face. "Say that again, _beansprout_." He dragged out the nickname on purpose, standing straight and towering over the girl. "I dare you."

 _Gladly,_ she thought. "BaKanda here," she turned to the other two, "Can't even process a single word, so what more manners? He is, after all, what people call a _barbarian_." Lavi raised an eyebrow in amusement, watching silently while Lenalee decided it might be time to step in. But she didn't have the time to, because Kanda stepped closer into the girl's private space, his scowl turning into an insulted and unforgiving smirk.

"Barbarian?" He asked. "Last I checked, beansprout, you couldn't even eat without slobbering all over the place," he said. Allison ignored the comment. "He'd never be able to treat a stranger right, so of course there's absolutely no way he can treat a _girl_ right."

Kanda raised an eyebrow at this, seeming to understand that this was a challenge. "Oh?" He said. "You think I can't treat a girl right?" He asked.

Allison turned back to him. "What are you, stupid?" She said, "Of course I _don't_."

His smirk widened then, surprisingly, and Allison became a little worried. What was he planning now?

"Well then," he scoffed, "I guess I'll just have to prove it," and walked away. Allison blinked, caught off guard by the unexpected lack of response. She had a bad feeling about this.

"Oh, no. What did I just do?" She groaned, accidentally blurting her thoughts aloud.

Lavi burst out laughing, absolutely amused by the expression on Allison's mortified face. Lenalee just shook her head and sighed. "Well, maybe if you two stopped fighting for once," she said, "this wouldn't have happened." She scolded.

Allison whined. "I know, but it's just... it's just impossible!" She threw her arms forward in the direction Kanda had left. "I don't think I'll ever get along with him!" She exclaimed, "No, correction - I _know_ I'll never get along with him! He's a sadistic jerk, that's what he is!"

Lavi had begun to calm down from his laughing fit, and steadied the gifts that had shaken along with his trembling shoulders. "So, you're saying that you're not on the _other_ side?" He asked suggestively, wiggling his eyebrows.

His grin only grew wider when Allison heated up, blushing beet-red and letting steam come off her face.

"N-No! Lavi, that's disgusting!" She yelled. Again, Lenalee just sighed. Her friends were stupid. "Geez, stop teasing her already, Lavi," she scolded the chuckling teen. He just shrugged, rolling his eyes playfully and laughed it off. "Okay, okay," he said. "I know I don't have to emphasize when I'm right," he added, earning another earful from the girls.

"Lavi, contrary to popular belief, I am not a masochist," Allison pouted. "What are you, an idiot?" She gave him a look that showed she thought he was crazy. "Actually, nevermind." She shook her head. "You are an idiot."

"Hey!"

Lenalee agreed. "Yes, Lavi. I don't think I know anyone else worse than you." Lavi leaned back in a dramatic gesture, a fake-hurt expression on his face. "You wound me, ladies," he said, and both girls rolled their eyes.

"Sure, Lavi," Allison replied. "Now can we get going? These gifts are heavy," she nodded to her burden. "Yeah, yeah," he said, and they entered the cafeteria.

The faded noisy chatter only grew louder when they entered, tables and chairs filled with groups of food and people. A long line started from the window of Jerry's kitchen, where members each placed their orders. Above it, a green garland hung decoratively, with ornaments and pine cones hung across it festively as it stretched across the room. The walls hadn't been decorated all too much, so more or less the scene was the same as usual - if you could ignore the large, towering fir tree that was placed in the middle of the room. Early on, the Science department had moved aside the other tables and benches to make room for the giant thing, which reached more than half the way to the ceiling.

The tree itself was bright and sparkling, colorful balls and candy canes scattered around its body together with shining string lights. A gold garland wrapped around upwards delicately, leading to a beautiful, elegant pointed star placed on top. Allison's presents were to be placed under it, of course, along with the many, many others resting there. She was surprised by the fact that there was still space, even, despite there being at least a hundred by now.

"Wow," she said, having never seen so many gifts all at once in her life. "This is... a lot." She didn't know what else to say about it, having become a little speechless at the sight. Lavi chuckled, and Lenalee smiled excitedly. "I know, right?" She turned to Allison, "It's like this every year, and I never get tired of it," she said.

"Every year?" Lavi asked, slowly becoming giddy himself. "Then please, let me stay here all my life so I can reign in the presents." His eyes shone with childish merriment.

"I'm pretty sure that none of those gifts are for you, Lavi," Allison half-joked, earning a giggle from Lenalee. Lavi whined. "What? No way! Everyone loves me!" He shouted, and if he wasn't carrying presents Allison was sure he would have flung his arms in the air. Nonetheless he got a few stares, and naturally, _are you crazy?_ looks from others who heard him and chose to pay attention.

"Besides," he continued, "you two have got gifts for me, don't you?"

The three arrived in front of the grand tree, and Allison began placing down her presents. "Do I?" She feigned ignorance. "I'm not sure. Lenalee, did you see any gifts for Lavi in there?" She smirked, and Lenalee shook her head, a smile on her lips.

"Nope! But maybe I should check again," she said, and pretended to look through the pile. "Just to make sure that we don't, of course," she added, and burst out laughing when Lavi, whose arms were now free of boxes, gripped his hair in distress.

"Aw, come on! Guys, don't be like that!" He begged, and Allison burst out laughing, too. The horrified look on his face was priceless!

"Fine," he grumbled, sinking into a slight sulk, "then I guess I'll change my gift for you into something you'll regret," he said.

For some reason it sent a pinch of worry into Allison's stomach, but she ignored it, thinking that it was nothing.

But oh, no. Come tomorrow, she will most definitely regret this.

* * *

 **Hah. Finally! Whew, that took a bit out of me. So like I promised, here's my first Christmas special of the season! Honestly, I think this came out really well. I'm happy with this for once in my life. Also, I've got the next few chapters planned out, and Chapter 1 is currently in progress. I'm super excited. And surprisingly, I wrote a pretty long chapter (for me, anyway). Also, for that scene when Allison trips I didn't think I'd put Lavi there to catch her, but as soon as I wrote it I felt my shoujo manga instincts kick in.**

 **Not kidding. I felt that trigger in my otaku heart get activated.**

 **Well, anyways, I hope you enjoyed it, and if you did, leave a review maybe? Thanks for reading, and happy holidays,**

 **Animellow**

 **Words (content only): 2416**


	2. Day 1: A Kiss Under the Fir Tree

After travelling up to her room (guided by Lenalee, so as not to get lost), Allison flopped onto her bed in exhaustion. She didn't bother to remove her boots or cover herself with a blanket, eyes still open and not quite ready to sleep yet. Timcanpy hovered nearby, serving as her only company.

"Tomorrow is Christmas, huh, Tim?" She asked the cute golem. It moved in to perch on a finger, and Allison obliged, shifting her forearm into the air.

"It's going to be a pretty big day," she said.

She didn't know what to do, honestly. She knew that there was going to be a celebration - but then what? For some reason her chest felt a little empty, as if a hole in her heart was left unfilled. Maybe it was because Mana wouldn't be there with her, just like every other year.

Allison knew it wasn't anything new, but she still missed him even more dearly at this time of the year. After all, he was the one who gave her a new purpose - along with an identity, a name, a _life_ \- and one that was celebrated each year, just like many other people. Tomorrow was another one of those celebrations.

But again, he wouldn't be there.

Even though Allison knew his soul was watching over her from Heaven, she still couldn't quite come to terms with it. She wanted to see him, mouth open wide in a genuine smile, eyes closed in merriment as he laughs once more. His beautiful laugh which rings in her ears, his joy contagious and spreading warmth into her heart, the likes of which she'd never known - and maybe never again, because nothing was quite like the warmth he gave her.

She covered her eyes with a hand, and felt a wet substance touch her glove. Slightly surprised, she lifted it, and found a small round water mark on it.

 _Tears_.

Had she been crying? Since when? Quickly, she rubbed her eyes with both hands, not wanting to be seen like this by anyone. Even though no one would probably barge into her room, Allison couldn't help it. No one could know. No one needed to.

She sniffled, and rolled onto her side, letting her arm fall back to the bed. Timcanpy fluttered down gently onto her hair, putting a paw sympathetically forward, sensing her mood. She didn't know if it knew what she was thinking, but she was grateful for the comfort.

"Thanks, Tim," she said quietly, closing her eyes. "I'll just go to sleep for a bit, okay...?" She asked groggily, and soon fell into a deep slumber, sorrow and pain in her heart slowly fading away like a dream.

• • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •

The next day, Allison woke up to a freezing but bright morning, winter sunlight pouring in through the window of her room. Her eyes slowly fluttered open, and sitting upright she sleepily rubbed an eye.

"Tim...?" She called, not seeing the golem flying around or resting somewhere in her chambers. Something warm covered her form, she noticed, and looked down to see the blanket she had been too lazy to pull over herself.

Huh. Timcanpy must have done it while she was asleep somehow, which was very sweet of him. She smiled softly at the thought. _Thanks, Tim._

She reminded herself to repeat that to the golem later if a cat hadn't eat him yet, and Allison began to get up from her bed. Swiveling her legs around, her boots touched the floor and she stood up, stretching.

What time was it? She wondered. Hopefully she hadn't woken up too late. She wouldn't hear the end of it from Lavi, and possibly Lenalee. As for Kanda, she didn't really care what he thought, although he should at least stay for presents if he had any human decency.

After a quick trip to the bathroom and brushing her long hair, Allison stepped out and walked into the corridors of the many rooms. She headed down to the cafeteria where, she assumed, her friends were waiting, excited to start the gift exchange. And though Allison wasn't one to become invested in this sort of thing, with her new home and the people in it, things seemed to be different. It was as if the world had become brighter, and the girl found herself rushing a little to meet everyone.

When she arrived at the scene, Allison was met with the sight of crowds chatting happily at the tables before her. Many were just simply talking and not eating, Jerry leaning out of her window to bask in the festive air. In front of the tree at the center was Komui, his darling sister by his side as he lifted a wine glass. Upon noticing Allison, he smiled, and the girl guessed it meant that everyone was now here. With a flick of his fingers it rung out musically, and another and another. The chatter died down then, and everyone turned to face the chief.

Allison smiled, not really listening to his speech. Lenalee gave her a small wave, and she returned it, then set out to find someone else she knew.

Suddenly, her stomach rumbled.

Then again, she could always do that later. First priority was food.

Walking over to the line-free window, Jerry saw her come over and immediately brightened. She beamed at the girl, welcoming her lovingly. "Allison, my girl! What can I get for your holiday feast?" She cooed, and Allison laughed light-heartedly. "Hi, Jerry-san," she greeted, and began to list off her order.

"Let's see... I'd like a roast Turkey, some scallops and rice, fried chicken and peas, assorted vegetables and bacon and eggs, hot pot, fish fillet, cream soup and spinach soup, oh, and also some gravy for that chicken, pizza, sweet and sour pork, steak, a hamburger, and shrimps and soy sauce." She took a deep breath, and Jerry quickly retrieved another sheet for Allison's dessert list. "Then for dessert I'd like mitarashi dango,"

"Lots of it, sweetie?"

"Yes, please, and chocolate cheesecake and strawberry shortcake, chocolate brownies and assorted cookies and your famous apple and cherry pies." She stopped short of breath, finally finished with her order. Jerry raised an eyebrow.

"That's not your usual order, honey. You okay with just this?" She asked, a little concerned. Allison nodded. "Yup. That's all for today," she said. "Thanks, Jerry-san!"

"Okay, then. If that's what you want," she replied, beaming at the girl before offering, "Oh, I have a new treat I came up with recently. Would you like to try it, hon?"

Allison's eyes grew bigger. "A new treat?" She asked excitedly. "What kind?" Jerry chuckled. "It's a new recipe," she explained, "it's got three alternate layers of orange and lemon cheesecake, and if you want you can add chocolate syrup on it," she said. "I haven't gotten many people to try it yet, and I'd really appreciate if I got some feedback on its taste."

Allison's mouth watered a little. "Well, it sounds good to me!" She said. "Anything you make is delicious, and I'm sure that your new cake will be, too." She smiled at him, and Jerry squealed. "Ohhh! Thank you, hon! I just know you'll like it," she squeaked, and headed to the kitchen to prepare her order.

Allison laughed a little in fondness, and was happy to be of help to the chef. Surely with the heaping amount of food she always ordered the cook got tired, and she was glad to finally be able to repay that debt, even if it was just a little bit. Turning around to search for an open table, her stomach grumbled again. She ignored it, and scanned the room.

It seemed like all the tables were taken, which was saying a lot, considering the extremely large size of the place. It took her nearly ten minutes of wandering around to find even a near-full one afar, but before she could reach it a finder took the chair. Well, that was fine with her - she wasn't very comfortable with people she wasn't familiar with anyway. She looked to her left, then to her right, and was about to sigh when she heard her name being called.

"Allison, over here!" Lavi shouted, but upon not seeing the red-head she supposed it was her imagination. She shrugged it off, and continued walking around.

"Allison!" The voice called again, and the girl realized it was not her imagination. "Behind you!" He shouted, and she obeyed. But looking behind her, she didn't see him still.

"Behind the tree!"

 _Ah_ , she thought, and worked her way through the tables and behind the tree, which had been blocking her view from where she stood. She hadn't bothered to look there because she assumed that, like the others, the chairs there were full, but it seems she was wrong.

After turning a corner, Allison scanned the area for her friends and found Lavi standing up, waving his arms to and fro from the far side of the cafeteria. She sighed in relief, shaking her head a little, then went to join him.

Once she got to the table, which had been laid with various foods and trays of dishes save for one big spot that was empty, Lavi patted her on the head and ruffled her hair. "Took you long enough, shorty," he joked, and Allison shot a glare at him.

"The name is Allison!" She shouted for the millionth time. Lavi put his hands up. "Okay, okay," he said defensively, then added, " _shorty_."

A vein popped out of her head, Allison's scowl turning into a polite but frighteningly restrained smile. She began to laugh evilly, a black aura peeking out from behind her. She was about to maim and hopefully seriously injure the poor boy when she felt a hand on her shoulder.

She turned behind her and looked upwards, immediately calming down and snapping out of her "black" mode. Gazing down at her were a pair of two closed eyes, brown skin and a large build stopping her. She spotted Miranda sitting to the left of what was Noise Marie's space on the bench, who looked very worried, and snapped out of her mood.

"Hi, Noise," she greeted, "Merry Christmas." She heard Lavi breathe a sigh of relief, and sit down. Miranda calmed a little, but was still afraid for Allison. "A-Are you alright, Allison?" She asked, putting a hand to her chin. She nodded, feeling guilty for having made her worry. "I'm fine, thank you," she replied.

From beside Lavi, Krory called the girl over. "We saved you a seat, Allison. Here," he said, and patted the space beside him. She smiled gratefully, and sat between him and the wall.

Soon after a round of applause filled the hall, and Allison realized that Komui must have finished his speech. She and the other exorcists clapped too, and listened to the chief's announcements as it died down.

"Alright, let the gift giving... commence!" He yelled dramatically, voice high-pitched and in child mode. Another round of applause ensued, and everyone continued chatting away, waiting for their names to be called to receive a gift until it was over.

"Hey, has anyone seen Kanda?" Krory suddenly asked, and Lavi shook his head. "Nope. Don't think the guy is into this stuff," he said.

"Eh..." he said, but didn't look as if he was surprised. Allison laughed, and put a hand on his arm. "It's fine, Krory," she told him, "BaKanda doesn't have to come if he doesn't want to. It'll only prove that he actually has manners, which, he doesn't." Krory laughed nervously. "A-Allison..."

She shrugged, glancing at the two others chatting privately in front of them. "It's true," she said simply, and stayed silent, listening for her name for a few seconds.

"Lavi, would you please come up and distribute your presents?" Komui called, and Allison's head jerked up. She turned to her friend, who stood up from his seat.

"Guess I gotta go," he said, and winked before leaving. Was it just her, or did that wink seem to be meant for Allison?

She watched as he ran to the center, skillfully avoiding bumping into tables and walking finders or scientists. When he got there, he seemed to be slightly out of breath and was panting as he grabbed the mic from Komui. "Thanks, chief!" He yelled, and began to call out the names on his prepared gifts. His list wasn't very long, and so in less than half an hour he reached the end of his pile.

Komui turned to him. "Is that all, Lavi?" He asked, but he received a no in reply. "Actually, I _might_ have one more," he waggled his eyebrows, and the chief raised one of his own. Allison rolled her eyes from where she sat, knowing that she was the only one missing her present. Lenalee, Krory, Miranda, and Noise had already received theirs, while Chaoji, poor guy, was out on a mission. And with Kanda who knows where she was the only friend left.

 _It must be payback for yesterday_ , she reminded herself, remembering her insult to the boy. She would regret what she said was what he told her, and so she ignored his antics and continued to eat the food that had arrived earlier.

But then, to her surprise, Lavi did call her name. "Allison Walker, come up here!" He announced, and she stood up, a little confused. Her heart began beating rapidly, and nervousness built up in her gut. Was this a prank? She hoped not. _Oh, Lord, please don't let this be a prank,_ she prayed, because the last time he did that she was absolutely mortified. Even now, just thinking about it set her face on fire.

When she got to the tree, Lavi was already crouching and gesturing for her to help him look for her present. Allison narrowed her eyes suspiciously at him and questioned his seemingly innocent look. He could be a pretty good liar when he wanted to be, and Allison didn't want to fall for another one of his tricks. "I don't trust you," she accused, and didn't make a move closer. He put a hand to his chest dramatically.

"That hurts, you know," he said. "And what reason do you have to not trust me?" He asked, and she put a hand to her head. "Are you kidding me?" She shook her head, exasperated. "Lavi, we already went through this," she said. "And after what you said yesterday? Even more reason not to trust you."

He rolled his eyes, and pulled her down anyway. "Stop being such a sourpuss, beansprout," he teased, ignoring Allison's protests to the nickname, "and just help me find your gift," he said. She groaned.

"Lavi, how are we even going to find it in this mess? There are like, a thousand in here." She turned to him, and watched as he started sifting quickly through the pile. "Just look," he ordered, and she reluctantly obliged. Meanwhile, Komui called up someone else to distribute their presents while the two looked, not even close to halfway done yet.

Allison whined. "Lavi, are you toying with me? It doesn't seem like it's in here," she said, tired and still suspicious. Lavi chuckled, somehow still cheerful. "Keep looking," was all he said, and Allison sighed. An hour or two later, after a rather good amount of presents had been taken away from the excruciatingly large pile Allison and Lavi finally reached the back of the tree. Still having not found it, Allison was getting really annoyed, and would have rathered not getting a gift than to spend all this time looking for it when it might not even be there.

She groaned again, causing Lavi to look up. "Lavi, are you sure it's here?" She asked incredulously, stifling a yawn and eyes drooping slightly. The boy held back a chuckle, and brushed some hair away from her face in an almost romantic gesture, if Allison didn't know better. But she did, and thought nothing of it.

He pulled back his hand quickly, as if realizing what he was doing and turned back to the gifts in front of him. "Yeah, I'm sure," he said, then slowly, somewhat unnaturally turned his head upwards. "Oh, found it," he said, and stood up. Allison furrowed her brows, not understanding what he meant. His arms were void of any wrapped box or bag, so what was it? Sure, he didn't need to actually get her anything - but playing a prank on her for Christmas was not something she'd appreciate.

"Lavi, what are you talking about?" She complained, "Your hands are empty," and gestured to his arms. He took one of her outstretched wrists and pulled her up, laughing at her. "You'll see," he said, and called out to Komui just after another member finished their distribution.

"Komuiii! I found it!" He yelled, and Komui peeked out from the other side of the tree. "Oh?" He said, his voice echoing from the microphone. "Did you now?"

Lavi nodded. "Yeah, and I want to give it to her in front of everyone!" He dragged out the last word, and the chief promptly came over with Lenalee, who was shaking her head.

"Alright then," he said, "But where is it?" Komui didn't see the present in Lavi's arms, and looked to the floor. Lavi pointed up.

"It's there," he winked, and Allison didn't miss it. What did he mean? She looked up to where she was pointing, and then she spotted it - it was small, and if you weren't close enough to see it or weren't looking for it you wouldn't find it. It's leaves were a dark shade of green and berries a Christmas red, and knowing exactly what that was, her eyes grew wide.

 _No! He wouldn't_ , she thought.

But oh, he would. She knew that.

A second too late to react Lavi had stepped closer, grabbed her by the waist, leaned in and kissed her.

Her breath hitched, and her brain stopped working.

He was kissing her.

Kissing. Her.

It was a quick, light and playful kiss, Lavi nibbling her bottom lip a bit before letting go. Allison was so shocked that her mind had gone blank - and for a minute she just stood there, staring at nothing. Lenalee had gasped, a squeal coming out of her mouth as she pushed away Komui's hand which tried to cover her eyes. The whole hall was silent, before erupting into yells of approval and launching into a slight chaos. Banging was heard, cheers were screamed, rounds of applause came from everywhere - but Allison couldn't really process it. Her mind was whirling, her brain still in shut-down mode and trying to wake up to realize what just happened.

Lavi started laughing like crazy, throwing his head back and wiping a tear from his eye. He put an arm round her shoulders, which was when the poor girl finally snapped out of her stupor. She glared up at him, face beginning to sport a bright holiday color. " _Lavi_!" She hissed, her voice unable to come out more than a whisper. "What the hell?!"

Lavi only laughed louder, pulling the girl closer and causing her blush to fester more. She lost balance for a second and tried to catch herself, her hands falling on his firm chest by accident. Its firmness made her cheeks flare for some reason, and she tried to look terrifying as she focused on putting her brain into Black mode so she could pummel him. But her attempt failed, and her scrunched brows looked no more terrifying than an adorable pout.

Lavi ruffled her hair innocently, his chesire grin wider than she had ever seen it. Somehow, she found it cute, and her face grew even redder, if that was possible.

He released her then, and she was about to rub her lips when Lavi grabbed her wrist. "Ah, ah, ah!" He scolded, and put his forehead against hers. Allison wanted to die.

"If you rub that kiss away, you're getting another one," he whispered, and Allison squeaked, heart beating uncontrollably. Unable to say anything else, and definitely not wanting another kiss, she nodded. Lavi seemed to be satisfied, and pulled back.

"By the way," he said, "was that your first kiss, beansprout?" He asked amusedly, eyes flashing devilishly. She scowled, and didn't answer properly. "T-That's none of your business!" She yelled, fists clenched at her sides. Turning her back to him, the poor girl huffed and stomped away, a low growl possibly emitting from her throat. Lavi just smirked, laughing at her cute antics.

• • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •

"Could this get any _worse?_ " She groaned, flopping face first onto her bed. Timcanpy was now back in the room with her, and let itself land gently on the space beside her head. She turned to face him, very glad at that moment that Tim hadn't been there to capture the moment.

"I mean, seriously, just for a prank he goes and kisses me?" She whined, "What the heck is wrong with him?" Her ears and cheeks heated up. Burying her face into the softness of her pillow, Allison tried to go to sleep. She didn't want to have to remember earlier's events, having gone back to the room as soon as she finished eating. She couldn't look anyone in the eye or function normally, and it was all because of that stupid red-head and his stupid "gift".

But every single second she thought of nothing, somehow her thoughts began to bubble back up, that line of thinking heading straight towards that exact moment. She whined again, and abruptly stood up.

"That's it," she said, not taking this any longer.

"I'm going to train."

• • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •

 **First chapter up! Hell yeah. I'm finally moving and trying to meet my deadline. Hopefully I'll finish chapter two by tomorrow, and I can't wait! Can you?**


	3. Day 2: Two Shows of Love (Rewritten)

**ATTENTION: For those of you who've read this chapter, I'd like to inform you that I have REPLACED IT. I reread it through, and I finally realized how terrible it actually was. So yeah, I ended up rewriting most of it, starting from when Allison and Kanda sit down. Sorry about that! I'll also be repeating this on Chapter 3, by the way, for those who skip this chapter and head on to that one. But until I post it, enjoy!**

* * *

Stepping out of her room, Allison shut the door behind her and moved forward. Her heart was still in chaos, ears a beautiful shade of red because of the stunt Lavi had pulled. To shake it off, she decided to go spar. Sparring always took her mind off the things she didn't want to think about, and she wanted to forget this fast. So hurriedly, she walked through the halls of the Order and made her way to the training room, praying fervently that she didn't encouter anyone.

Unfortunately, it seems fate was not on her side today. As soon as she entered the training room she found herself facing the sweaty bare back of a man. His long blue hair was tied in a ponytail, his form tensing when he struck the bamboo sword against a wooden figure. Allison averted her eyes.

Upon hearing the door open and close, Kanda turned round to see who had disturbed his training session. When Allison's gaze met his, he narrowed his eyes.

"What are you doing here, beansprout?"

"The name is Allison!" She yelled, before answering, "And I'm just here for the same reason you are: to train." Taking off her jacket, the girl proceeded to retrieve a bamboo stick of her own. She pointed it at Kanda afterwards, challenging him to a fight. "Wanna go?"

Kanda smirked, accepting her challenge. "If you want to lose," he said, and she charged.

He spun and swung the pole at her feet, Allison jumping up to avoid the blow. She then brought down her stick at Kanda's head, but he dodged and grabbed her arm. He flipped her over and she landed hard on her back, coughing slightly. Soon after she got back up, avoiding a stab from the samurai above her and performing a back-flip. After landing steadily on her feet she spun around to meet her opponent, who swung his sword toward her head from the side. She ducked, and tried to sweep his legs with one her own, but he spun his body and sword simultaneously to both avoid it and leave enough room to hit her in the back. She fell forward, not expecting the blow, and he pointed the bamboo at her neck.

They both panted, out of breath, clearly seeing the winner. "Looks like... you lose again," he said in between breaths. "You're getting rusty." Kanda removed his pole from its spot, not bothering to help Allison stand up. She dusted herself off and walked over to the side to sit down. The fight was much quicker than usual, but Allison didn't really care. Right now she was focused on the present, and that was all that mattered.

"I'm not going to lose next time," she said, a determined glare in her eyes. Kanda scoffed. "Sure," he said, and went to get the towel resting beside her. It was wet already, but he didn't care, and wiped away the sweat on his brow. He sat down beside her a moment later.

Soon silence took its place, casting a somewhat comfortable air around the two as they rested. Allison leaned on a nearby pillar, closing her eyes shut. She took advantage of the peace and quiet, letting the darkness enfold her as her mind wandered.

 _Today's the twenty-fifth..._ she began to think randomly, _that means..._

 _It's my birthday,_ she realized.

That's right. Today was the day Mana had found her all those years ago. And since she had never known her actual birthday, this day had simply become known as the day she was born. Because that was the day she was given a name - an identity, a life.

 _Huh_ , she thought. She had done so well in hiding it that was never celebrated, so even she had forgotten about it until now. No one else knew.

Or so she thought.

"Here." Kanda's rough, low voice spoke suddenly. "Happy birthday," he mumbled under his breath. Allison nearly missed it, but she had pretty sharp ears.

Her eyes snapped open, surprised by his sudden kindness. Was this a trick?

"No, you dumbass, it's not." He replied.

Oh. Had she said that out loud?

He was in front of her now, standing again. In his hand he held out to her a silver bag with a white ribbon, expression unreadable. Tentatively she reached for it, pausing just before grabbing the handles. She was still confused somewhat, and shifted her gaze to Kanda's eyes.

"What are you doing?" He shoved it into her face. "Just take it, dumbass," he told her. "Or do you not want it?"

"N, No- I mean, I do," she stammered.

Looking back into his eyes as she took it gratefully, she wanted to know what he was thinking. She didn't know how he got that information on her - it wasn't something she divulged to anyone. She didn't even think Master Cross knew, and yet Kanda did. Really, how on earth did he find out?

Again, she realized she had blurted her thoughts aloud when he replied. "That's none of your business, beansprout," he said simply, ignoring the girl's glare at the nickname.

"It's Allison!" She hissed, before suddenly feeling shy and looking down at her feet. "But thank you," she said, and sat back down. Kanda resumed his place beside her.

"The others don't know?" He shifted his gaze to her, eyes narrowed slightly. She shook her head in response. "No," she told him. "I think you're the only one who knows, out of everyone I've met here."

"And don't tell them," she added as an afterthought.

Kanda didn't say a word, but still stared at her. Something about his gaze made her uncomfortable, as if he was trying to see right through her. As if he was examining her every thought in that moment, trying to understand.

"Why?" He finally asked.

Allison sighed.

"I don't know," she replied. "I just... I don't really think it's worth celebrating," she told him. "Besides," Old, painful memories began to rise within her, "winter was never my favorite season."

Again, Kanda repeated the question. "Why?"

"I don't know, okay?" Allison began to grow annoyed. "Winter is cold, winter is lonely... winter is ruthless and makes it hard to survive," she rambled, unconsciously sounding like she knew what she was talking about, because she did. "Winter is the time when everyone gets together, except for those who have to work for themselves or have no one else to help them." She shrugged.

"But you do have people to help you."

Allison nearly jumped, not expecting a response. Kanda hadn't turned his eyes away from her. Not yet at least, and she grew a little more uncomfortable.

"And if those losers eventually hate you," he continued, "You at least ..ve .e."

Allison strained to hear the last part, but couldn't quite catch it.

"What?"

Kanda looked as if he would rather die than repeat it, but did so anyway. "I said, you at least have... _me_." Allison had to lean closer and just barely caught the last word, even after Kanda had made it easier to understand. But when she finally processed what he said, her heart skipped a beat.

Did he just... say what she think he said? No, that couldn't be right. There was no way. Laughing it off, she supposed she must have taken it the wrongly somehow.

She opened her mouth. "What do you mean by tha-"

Cutting her question short, Kanda abruptly kissed her. His lips were soft and gentle, and his tongue dancing awkwardly in her mouth tasted like soba and mint. But despite that she could feel the passion in the action as he continued kissing her, eyes closed while hers were still open.

Allison didn't know how to react. Her brain cells were not as muddled at the sudden contact this time - rather, they were wide awake. Kanda's kiss felt sweet and almost loving, lasting much longer than the Lavi's. See, Lavi's kiss had shocked the girl utterly and completely, not even giving her enough time to register it. But Kanda's... Kanda's was, well... it was intimate. He gave her time to process the fact, and the way his lips carressed hers was soft and gentle. And though it really lasted only a few seconds, it felt much, much longer than that.

Eventually he pulled back, dark eyes now refusing to look into her silver ones. His gaze was turned to the floor, and he mumbled something before suddenly standing up, and leaving the girl by herself.

Why did he do that? BaKanda hated her. Absolutely despised her. She wasn't as shocked as she might have usually been otherwise, and somehow she was... calm.

Slowly, her brain came to understand what it was that he had mumbled.

"Mistletoe."

She turned her head up to confirm it, and there it was - a real, live mistletoe. Not like the fake green one with beads for berries, or felt for leaves on the fir tree. This one was somehow still alive, hanging from a string on the ceiling as its smooth stem branched out to hold white, round orbs.

She couldn't believe what had just transpired. How could time still function normally while she was still frozen in place? From the corner of her eye, she could see snowflakes continue their descent to the ground below, as if nothing amazing and mysterious had just happened.

At the edge of the window, a flash of gold too far from her field of vision dashed out of sight.

* * *

 **Well, anyway, I hope you enjoyed this part. And if you haven't noticed, I've put a poll up for this story. You can vote in advance for who you want Allison to "choose" at the end of this story, so check it out on my profile! Guests/visitors can leave their votes in a review. As always, thanks for reading.**


	4. Day 3: Three Small Pecks

**ATTENTION: FOR THOSE WHO HAVEN'T NOTICED, I REWROTE MOST OF CHAPTER 2. PLEASE READ THAT FIRST. THE REWRITTEN STUFF STARTS FROM AFTER KANDA AND ALLISON FINISH THEIR SPAR.**

 **A few clarifications** mentioned **in chapter 1, meant for those who haven't seen the edit, but also a reminder for those who have (by the way, I edited #4, for those who've seen it):**

 **1\. Timcanpy won't be seen as often in this story - partially because he'll be doing something else (to be written in a extra/side story for this), partially because I forgot about him.**

 **2\. While reading, you'll see OOCness and many questions will be raised - I'll try to answer these in extra stories written after this one, in each of the boys' perspectives. If after that your questions are still not answered, you may leave a review or PM me.**

 **3\. I do not own D. Gray-Man - the awesome woman known as Katsura Hoshino does - and she rules.**

 **4\. Like how many chapters in the manga are called "Nights", each chapter in this story is called a "Day". Though truth be told, after the prologue the story takes place on Christmas Day (chapters 1-3).**

 **The end. Now enjoy!**

* * *

It took an hour later for Allison to finally realize that she never got an answer to her question. Kanda had found out about her birthday, but how? Ignoring the little "event" of the time (she knew it probably didn't mean anything - same with Lavi), she continued to wonder how he had gotten a hold of that information. Did she accidentally mention it at some point? She doubted it, but it was the most plausible cause.

She sighed, letting herself sink into the softness of the couch, a book resting open on her lap. Beside her, Link sat upright and properly, eyes reading the pages of his own novel. They were relaxing in the library, neither attempting at a conversation, but upon hearing Allison sigh for the fifth time he could not take it.

"What happened?" He asked nonchalantly, hiding his slight annoyance at her mood.

She didn't answer. She didn't really want to talk about it right now. She couldn't let Link know - it was somewhat connected to her past, and if he found any opportunity to ask her about it directly he would take it, knowing it wouldn't hurt the girl as much as it would otherwise. Plus, it was embarrassing.

"Nothing," she grumbled, and took the book from her lap to place it on top of her face, blocking out the light and closing her eyes. Link almost thought about removing the book, but chose not to in the end.

"You sighing for five times in less than three minutes isn't nothing," he pointed out, and she heard him flip a page of his book. "Tell me what's wrong."

Normally Link didn't pry into these things - not while he had been away, at least. When he was gone he supposed the girl could have some form of privacy, because the last time he kept prying about the events while he was gone she nearly had a breakdown. But this time, he knew it probably wasn't something so serious, and asked again. "What's wrong?"

Allison hesitated for a moment. Should she tell him? On one hand, it would be really nice to get it off her chest. On the other, he'd probably jot it down in his notebook, possibly getting Kanda or Lavi unreasonable punishments.

"I won't write a word, Walker," he said, as if sensing her thoughts. "I can swear that to you."

Allison groaned, taking the book off her face of her own accord, lazily letting it fall onto the space beside her with a soft thump. "It's nothing," she said again. She saw Link roll his eyes.

"Walker, clearly it is not nothing, because for the past hour since I came back you haven't said a word, opting instead to sigh and grumble random nonsense to yourself," he said. Closing his book, he set it down onto the table in front of them. "Just tell me."

"It's just... _aghh_..." she complained, pulling her hands down her face.

"Walker, ' _aghh_ ' isn't going to be sufficient explanation," he told her. She groaned for the second time. "I know..." she mumbled. "Look, you don't need to know, okay? Trust me," she said, "Besides, you'd probably prefer not to. It's stupid."

Link rolled his eyes again. "I assure you, Walker, that I won't think it's stupid."

She opened one eye to stare at him with. "Promise?" She asked. He promised.

Allison took a deep breath, and told him. He seemed to be mostly listening, and let her ramble on and on about her complaints and dramatically wave her arms in the air. His only responses so far were an "Mm" or an "Okay", which annoyed her a bit - but otherwise she was grateful. When she finished, her chest immediately felt lighter, and she didn't feel the need to regret it. Not yet, at least.

Link sighed, rubbing his temple as if it was a pain. She furrowed her brows, insulted. "What? You told me to tell you," she said. Link didn't reply.

"Link." She called him. But again, he didn't respond.

"Link." Nothing.

She sighed and leaned in closer, snapping her fingers twice. "Hello? Anyone home in there?" She asked him, and he seemed to snap out of his daze.

"W-Walker!" He shouted, surprised by her closeness. Adjusting his coat as she pulled back, he huffed. "What are you doing?"

She rolled her eyes at him. "You were spacing out." She said, "What are you doing?"

He replied, "That's nothing you need to know," then changed it.

"Just a headache."

She sighed again. "So? What do you think?" She looked to him, referring to their earlier topic, currently her dilemma.

"About what?" He picked up his book. Opening it, he flipped back to the page he had stopped at.

"You know, about the... the thing!" She exclaimed, not wanting to have to say the word. If she did, she would probably burst into flames. Her ears were red enough as it is, and with the way her skin colored very easily she didn't want to show any more embarrassment.

Link resumed reading. "Walker, I offered to listen, but I never said I would give you advice," he told her, ignoring the mouth that hung open in disbelief. She closed it, and harshly fell back into the chair. "Fine," she said, "whatever," and stood up.

"Where are you going?" Link raised an eyebrow, and stood up after her. He put his book down and followed her as she walked towards the library's exit, hair waving gently at her back.

"To eat," she said, and just then her stomach growled, as if affirming why. He didn't reply, silently going along with her.

* * *

The cafeteria buzzed with noisy chatter, somewhat less crowded than it had been during the present distribution. Finders and scientists weaved in and out around others, sitting down at tables to eat with friends or standing up to leave. Surprisingly, the line for Jerry's window wasn't long, meaning only a short wait for food.

Allison frowned. She didn't want to have to face Lavi or Kanda, and knew that most likely they would be there somewhere to eat right now. But her stomach had been rumbling non-stop for the past fifteen minutes, and she couldn't ignore it for very long. She was hungry, and the embarrassment of Link seeing her want for food was too much.

Scanning the room for any signs of her friends, Allison walked in. She put around herself an air of calm as if nothing was wrong, though deep inside she was freaking out. She _really_ hoped she wouldn't see her friends, but that hope was crushed as soon as she stepped foot at the back of the line.

"Hey, beansprout!" Lavi called, coming in from behind to line up beside her. Allison inwardly groaned, but forced a smile onto her face. "Hi, Lavi," she greeted casually, as if nothing had happened between them. Link watched from the side, and she cursed him for abandoning her. She just prayed to God that Lavi wouldn't say a word about _that_.

"So," his usual mischievous grin appeared, "you wanna go out with me?"

Allison choked on her spit. _Way to get to the point_ , she thought.

"Lavi!" She half-whispered, "What are you saying?" She gave him a look as if to say he was crazy. Which he was, in her opinion. "That was just a kiss, wasn't it? Not an invitation to go out!"

Lavi didn't seem fazed. "So that's a no?" He asked her, and slung an arm round her shoulders. She saw him smirk smugly when she blushed furiously. "I don't- I don't know, okay?" She replied, just saying that in the moment.

"So that's a maybe," he stated, and looked to her for confirmation. Allison growled at him. "Lavi, it's just an 'I don't know'," she whined, exasperated. "Now would you drop it? I know you're not serious anyway," she told him, and moved forward to the window. As she began to list off her order, she didn't hear Lavi mumble under his breath. "I am serious."

When she finished, she quickly remembered one more important detail that couldn't be ignored, stacks and trays of food in hand. Link was following somewhere behind them, she knew, but ignored the presence like normal. "Is Kanda here?" She asked Lavi.

Was it just her, or did his smile seem to waver then?

"Yeah," he replied, sounding uninterested. Allison wondered why.

She didn't have to wonder for very long after she came to a table, the familiar group of exorcists chatting animatedly with each other. Kanda was once more at the edge, ignoring the bunch. She gulped, then spotted her place at the table on the other side, sighing in slight relief when she realized she would be far from him.

Looking at Kanda, he didn't seem to be acting any different from usual. He still ate soba in that quiet, don't-approach-me-or-I-will-kill-you manner, and was acting as if nothing had happened. Then she looked to Lavi, thinking that he should follow his example - but saw the look he was giving the samurai.

They had stopped walking now, and his smile hadn't left his face, but instead of friendly and playful it seemed cold and challenging. His green eye was narrowed slightly, staring unfeeling at the man across from them. When Allison turned to look at Kanda, she realized that he had been glaring too - it wasn't unusual, but now his deathly gaze was focused solely on Lavi, as if they were picking a fight.

Lenalee stood up from in front of Allison, brows furrowed. "You two, knock it off!" She scolded. "Geez, stop fighting," she said, and sat back down.

 _That's why he acted strange when I mentioned Kanda_ , she realized. _But why are they fighting?_

Lenalee sighed. "I don't know," she replied, shaking her head at Allison's again blurted-out-loud thoughts. "They've been like this since they first came to the cafeteria."

From beside her, Miranda worriedly held one hand in the other and brought them close to her chest. "I-I hope t-they're alright," she stammered.

Lavi turned to her, usual bright smile returning. "Yeah, we're okay," he assured her. "Kanda just needs to learn not to touch my stuff," he shot a quick glare at the samurai, who gladly returned it. Allison raised an eyebrow.

"BaKanda is stupid, Lavi, but I don't think he's the type to go randomly touching other people's stuff," she defended him, although also insulted him at the same time, earning a glare from said man. Lavi shrugged. "First time for everything," he said simply, and began pushing her to the empty seat. "Now come on, come on," he tried to distract her, not looking in Kanda's direction. "Your food's going to get cold."

Allison rolled her eyes, but went along with him anyway. Link silently followed from behind the two, and sat beside her after she set down her plates. Lavi frowned. "Uh, Link, that's my seat," he told him. Uncaring, Link put an elbow on the table and placed a cheek into his palm. "There's a seat over there, Bookman Junior," he pointed to the one across from Allison. "That should be sufficient, right?"

Lavi opened his mouth to retort, but stopped himself, shaking his head. "You know what? Never mind," he said, and reluctantly went to the other side. As he sat down, Krory joined in the conversation from his left.

"Lavi, I hope you don't mind my asking, but what did Kanda take from you?" He suddenly asked.

"Hm? Kanda didn't take anything," he corrected. "But I don't like others touching what's mine - and this particular thing is important to me."

"Oh," Krory said. "Like a... treasure?"

Lavi nodded. "Yup!"

"Exactly like that," he said. The smile he had then seemed to be quite calm despite his earlier attitude towards the samurai.

Allison found it strange. "Lavi, if it's that important to you," she took a fork and began to dig in. "Then... why do you... seem so... calm about it?" She said in between mouthfuls, at least refusing to talk with her mouth full.

"I'm only calm towards you guys," he explained, "You saw how I acted to Kanda." Leaning back and putting his arms behind his head, he continued, "Besides, he doesn't suit it."

Allison raised an eyebrow, letting her spoon hang in the air to talk for a second. "Don't you mean "'it doesn't suit him'?" She asked, then resumed gulping down incredible amounts of food. Lavi shook his head, his grin growing wider. "Nope!"

Just then Krory was called for by Lenalee, along with Miranda to help with something, and excused himself. Waving goodbye, his friends waved back before continuing their conversation.

"Hey, beansprout," Lavi moved on, pointing to her pudding as she started with dessert.

"The name is _Allison!_ "

"Yeah, yeah," he waved her off, ignoring her complaint. "Can I have some of that?" He asked. Allison frowned. "Why can't you get your own?"

Lavi put his hands together. "Cause I just want a bite," he said. "Please?" He pleaded, and if he wasn't wearing the eye-patch Allison knew he would have had that eye closed.

"No." She refused. "Go get your own."

Lavi wailed. "Pleaasse?" He asked again, raising the pitch of his voice. Kanda turned to them then, watching with narrowed eyes at what he was doing. Allison didn't notice, and still refused. "No. And stop that; it's annoying." She scooped a bite of the pudding, spooning it into her mouth.

"Come on," he put a hand forward, palm face-up. "Just a little bit to satiate my needs!" From beyond her attention, Kanda began to glare in an intimidating way at the teenager.

Allison shook her head. "You know what," she sighed, giving in because she knew he wouldn't leave it, "fine," and scooped another bite of the dessert. Lavi whooped in celebration. Leaning forward, he grabbed her wrist, and before she could protest shoved the thing into his mouth using her hand.

He let his lips glide off the spoon, staring at her with a mischievous glint in his eye.

Allison blinked, then slammed her hands on the table in fury. "Lavi! Don't grab my hand like that!" She yelled. "And why couldn't you get your own spoon first?" She glared at him, face red and letting out steam.

Lavi laughed at her reaction - it was adorable! Nothing could have made his day any more than this.

"I just wanted to see your reaction," he told her, and Allison followed his gaze to Link's normally razor-sharp pencil tip, which was now broken. She supposed it was nothing, and turned back to Lavi. "So?!" She exclaimed, "It was still an indirect-!"

She stopped herself, and sat back down after noticing that people were staring. Lowering her voice into an aggravated whisper, she continued. "It was still an indirect kiss!"

Suddenly, there was a loud, crunchy _snap_ from Kanda's direction. The two turned to look, and found the Japanese man gripping his chopsticks so hard that they were still breaking like bones in his grip. His eyes were narrowed so much that they were no more than slits, hand shaking in some form of anger, Allison believed.

Thinking he must have been mad for some unrelated reason, she whipped her head back to face the idiot she wished wasn't her friend. "Would you stop trying to embarrass me?" She told him, "I know your just doing this as a prank, or revenge or whatever, but this is too much," she said.

"In fact," she complained, "it's been too much ever since the start! And I don't know if you're teaming up with Kanda or something, but knock it off!"

Now satisfied with her rant, Allison took a deep breath, calmed down, and resumed her seat. She closed her eyes as she did so, and when she opened them, forced herself to appear less irritated.

"Now, if you'll excuse me," she stood up, and Link stood up also. "If you need me, I'll be in my room," she said, and shot Lavi one last look before she left, the inspector on her heels. Lavi just chuckled, shaking his head.

After she left, he waited a few seconds before turning to Kanda, whose eyes were still boring into his skull menacingly. His expression changed from kind and joyful to cold and dark, smug smirk not leaving his lips.

"So," he began, "You really think you can have her?"

He didn't wait for a reply. "Cause I don't want you touching her, ever. _Again_."

* * *

Allison was still blushing furiously as she stomped all the way back to her quarters, ignoring the confused and questioning stares of any finders or scientists she passed. Link followed close at her heels, though not in the same fashion. He was still generally calm and expressionless, or so he seemed.

For once, Allison found her room without even getting lost, opening the door and slamming it closed after Link entered. She didn't even care that he was there anymore - she just needed to let it all out.

She screamed in frustration, then flomped onto her bed face-down. She didn't bother to turn her face until she couldn't breathe anymore, eyes now calm though her heart still thumped rapidly.

"Lavi's an idiot," she grumbled into her pillow. "Seriously, who goes that far for a prank?" She told no one in particular, uncaring if Link was listening or not. (Probably the former.) Voicing her thoughts out loud carelessly, she continued.

"I don't understand." She turned onto her back, placing her forearm on her above her silver eyes. "I mean, really. I know he wants to get revenge on me for my Christmas joke, but that's just going too far."

She sighed. "I think I'm just going to sleep on it," she said. "I mean, what am I supposed to do?"

This time she turned to Link, who was standing beside the door, bored. "Hopefully by later I'll have forgotten about it," she sighed again. "I'm going to nap, okay Link?" She asked the inspector, who just nodded.

It was a while before the inspector, who had been waiting until she was asleep, moved from his spot. He had been waiting for a moment just like this, where she wouldn't be conscious to witness what he was about to do.

Truth be told, when she had told him about her earlier kisses from the two exorcists, he had been jealous. Very jealous. But unlike the three, he was experienced in dealing with new emotions and knew exactly what to do - put a lid on it. Which he did, albeit with much difficulty, and thus the spacing out in the library. Although, thinking back on it, he hadn't been all that subtle when he found himself face-to-face with the girl.

Then there was the recent happening in the cafeteria. Lavi was the play-boy type, he knew, but he still hadn't expected him to grab her spoon and eat from it. Like she had said at the time, it was an indirect kiss - the fact that it was done in front of him was no accident, he was sure. He had a feeling it was meant for him just as much as it was meant for Kanda, and now he really wanted to get some form of revenge, even if it was in secret. He needed a way to be satisfied, some way to let out his emotions of his crush on the girl.

Walking over to the sleeping form of Allison Walker, he watched as she rolled from her side onto her back, face calm and lips verging on a slight smile. Her beautiful, silver eyes were closed shut, long white hair flowing between her back and the bed. Whenever she was asleep, Link always found he couldn't take his eyes off her - why he didn't bother to ask anymore. But this time, it would be different.

His calm facade did well to hide what he felt, which right now he was grateful for, because he could feel his heart pounding like drums in his chest. He didn't even know what he was doing, and even though his brain screamed treason his heart yelled louder two words:

 _Do it._

He took a deep breath, steeling his nerves. He knew what he was about to do was something that should not be done, but his instincts, for once in his life, had won out against his reason. Ignoring all the warning signs, all the blaring alarms, all the possible consequences and frightening illusions of his imagination, he leaned down.

His face grew closer to hers, and he refused to close his eyes. His lips were less than an inch apart from her own when he paused, then left a small peck on them.

When he pulled back, he couldn't hide the bright tomato-red blush festering on his face. Quickly he entered the bathroom, wanting to calm his nerves before the girl woke up and saw him.

* * *

 **I notice now that I never mentioned what happened to the rest of Allison's dessert. Well, how about she's so embarrassed and distracted that she leaves it? I know it's wasting food, but... idk. *sweatdrops***

 **Also, how Lavi knows about Kanda "touching" his stuff? (Aka Allison) That is to be answered in Tim's side story, or maybe the extra in his or Kanda's perspective.**

 **As always, hope you enjoyed!**


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